The mother of United States Olympic men's hockey stars Jack and Quinn Hughes has publicly responded to former President Donald Trump's contentious joke about inviting the women's national team to the State of the Union address. This follows the men's dramatic 2-1 overtime victory against Canada in the gold medal game at the Winter Olympics on Sunday, where Trump called the players to congratulate them during their locker room celebrations.
Trump's Controversial Remarks Spark Debate
In a video capturing the celebratory moment, Trump can be heard inviting the men's team to both his State of the Union speech and the White House this week. He then added, 'we are going to have to bring the women's team, you do know that.' The former president further joked that if he failed to extend the invitation, 'I do believe I would probably be impeached!'
These comments quickly went viral online, igniting widespread contention with numerous commentators accusing Trump of misogyny. In response, the USA women's hockey team has declined the offer to join their male counterparts at the State of the Union on Tuesday night, citing 'previously scheduled commitments.'
Ellen Hughes Emphasizes National Unity
When asked for her reaction to Trump's joke, Ellen Hughes—a player development consultant for the women's team and mother to men's duo Jack and Quinn—stated on the TODAY show that 'at the end of the day, it's just about the country.' She elaborated, 'These players, both the men and women, can bring so much unity to a group and to a country. People that cheered on that don’t watch hockey, people that have politics on one side or on the other side, and that’s all both the men’s team and the women’s team care about.'
Both the men's and women's hockey teams secured gold medals for the United States at the Milan-Cortina Games, with the women's team also triumphing in an overtime battle against Canada last week. Hughes' son Jack scored the game-winning goal as the men claimed their first gold medal since 1980.
'It couldn’t have gone better,' Hughes continued. 'Both teams going undefeated. We couldn’t have written a better story, and I hope everybody just understands what we did in the moment, both the men and the women to bring this country together and let everybody cheer in the same direction.'
Brothers Highlight Team Camaraderie
Jack and Quinn Hughes also appeared on TODAY via video call to discuss the relationship between the two national teams. Quinn remarked, 'I’m glad you brought up the women because it was amazing to spend some time with them, too. And then obviously watch them, me and Jack were there, we watched them win the gold medal.' He added, 'They came to our game and were able to watch us. So just the support back and forth, just to get to know them a little better was special, too.'
Men's Team Accepts Invitation Amid Criticism
While the women's team has turned down the invitation, the USA men's hockey stars have accepted Trump's offer to attend the State of the Union and visit the White House this week. This decision has drawn significant criticism, including from former ESPN personality Keith Olbermann.
In a furious social media post on Monday, Olbermann wrote: 'Anybody smart (or respectful of women athletes) on the U.S. Men's Olympic hockey team or connected to it, will refuse Trump's invitation to The State of the Union. Any who show up are declaring their indelible stupidity and misogyny. The End.'
The ongoing debate underscores the complex intersection of sports, politics, and gender dynamics, as both teams navigate their post-Olympic celebrations and public engagements.
